John Glenn (1921-2016)

8 Dec 2016 — John Glenn, the first United States astronaut to orbit Earth, died today at the age of 95.

John Glenn served from 1974 until 1999 in the U.S. Senate

Sen. Glenn made three orbits of Earth in his craft, Friendship 7, in 1962. He later served as a United States senator, representing his home state of Ohio from 1974 through 1999, and became the oldest astronaut to go into space when he travelled as a payload specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-95) in 1998 at the age of 77.

He was a distinguished combat pilot in both World War II and the Korean War before transitioning into his role as a Navy test pilot. He retired from military life as a full colonel in the United States Marine Corps.

As both a military and civilian hero and icon, Sen. Glenn received countless commendations and awards during his lifetime, including the Distinguished Flying Cross (receiving this award six times), the Air Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Unit Commendation, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, China Service Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, United Nations Korea Medal, South Korea Presidential Unit Citation, Congressional Gold Medal, Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.